Lavigne in Austin writes in about the state of poker movements in Austin and elsewhere:

Re: How a thought becomes a law

Nice post. Thanks for the props. It is important that we keep giving the media clear messaging regarding poker and the fight to regulate it. They are all too willing to lump us in with the rest of the gambling talk.

I can tell you from my discussions with legislators and lobbyists pushing for various levels of gambling that we need to make sure that poker is kept separate. the only way we get decent poker in texas is through it being held in a separate class or, we allow full on casinos. I don’t think we are close to getting casinos, so for the time being we have to work on getting just poker rooms.

the fight will not just be as to whether or not we get poker, but who gets to run the rooms. Are bars allowed to have tables? who can hold charity tournaments? do we put tables in bingo halls? racetracks? or can we get separate rooms? if we get separate rooms, who will be eligeable to get licensed as operators, distributors of poker equipment etc…?

these are just a few of the questions that are being discussed right now. we need to have the full participation of the rooms or those who want to operate rooms.

Here in Austin a group called the Texas Card Player Association has formed. Several of these guys want to run rooms and are also interested in protecting the integrity of the game (avoiding a fiasco like FL).

I am on the TCPA board now as well. These guys are putting their $$ where their mouths are too. they make regular contributions to keep the organization going and are working hand in hand with the Poker PAC.

Dallas rooms should get on board now and help guide this movement. I know they have a lot historical and practical knowledge about running a good room that could be used to write good law.

Thanks for keeping the fight up in Dallas.

Lavigne

Thank you, Lavigne. And I, too, know a thing or two about the media … and these will be some of the decisions players face in the coming weeks/months … how big of a fight do they want to pick? While law and media perception go hand-in-hand, they are often two very different things.